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A federal judge in the United States (US) has issued a brief extension of an order temporarily blocking President Donald Trump’s plan to stop foreign nationals from entering the country to study at Harvard University.
Allison Burroughs, the district judge, ruled on Monday to extend a temporary restraining order set to expire on Thursday.
Burroughs extended the freeze to June 23, noting that she needed the time to decide on a ruling that could be a longer-term injunction.
Burroughs intervened in the Trump-Harvard row early this month after the White House issued a presidential directive banning the university from enrolling foreign students.
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The directive marked an escalation of the standoff between America’s oldest and wealthiest university and the presidency, a fight which has seen student visas revoked randomly and a pause in foreign student visa interviews.
The judge said if she did not step in, the school would “sustain immediate and irreparable injury before there is an opportunity to hear from all parties”.
Harvard has filed two separate lawsuits before Burroughs seeking to unfreeze around $2.5 billion in funding and to prevent the administration from blocking the ability of international students to attend the university.
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